Apparatus for indicating and regulating viscosity



A. osBouRNE 2,668,442 APPARATUS FOR INDICATING AND REGULATING VISCOSITYFeb. 9, 1954 A. osBouRNE 2,668,442 APPARATUS FOR INDICATING ANDREGULATING VISCOSITY Filed Nov. 1e. 194e `2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

Al AN OSBOURNE Patented Feb. 9, 1954 APPARATUS Foa INDrcsrINo AN.REGULATING vlsooslrr Alan sbourne, Washington, D. Application .November16, .1948, Serial No. 60,193

This invention relates to apparatus for autol or other pulp suspensionin a liquid as, conned in a tank or pipe line. My present inventionconstitutes an improvement over the apparatus described in my priorPatent No. 1,888,431 of November 22, 1932, in providing certain changesin structure which overcome 'd-ifculties encountered in the operation ofthe previous device.

As set forth in my prior patent, I utilize the torque reaction betweenthe stator housing of an electric motor and the rotor, wherein the rotorspins an element which is immersed in uid the viscosity oi which is tobe regulated. The general construction is such that the motor andvarious support elements are secured to the outside of a tank or pipeline containing the flu-id suspension while the spinning element iskeyed to a shaft rotated by 'the motor and isdisposed within the body ofthe fluid. In "thev prior patent a more or less Vconventional gland Yisused for sealing` the sha-it where it enters the tank or pipe line. .Ithas been found that this gland causes difficulty by virtue of 4the 4factthat particles of foreign matter become entrapped Atherein therebyincreasing the torque reaction between the motor housing and thespinning element, resulting 'in inaccurate operation of the apparatus.liurther. the slight `natural variation of fthe inherent friction of thegland which must be overcomeby mo tor torque causes some inaccuracy ofitself.

Accordingly, it is an obj-ect of the present fin;- venton to eliminatethe above .diifculty by isolati-ng l.mechanically thevrotor-osc'illating systemv trom its attachment to the liquid container.so that the reaction on 'the oscillating .element will truly reflectthe torque necessary to maintain' constant speed rotation Aofthezspinner element. c

A further @object of .my 'invention is pto :provide a simple :sealing:structure .fior certain elements of my :device which .enter Ithe fluid,v.which means will in no way affect the'operational characteristicsthereof.

aan .additional 'object of .my invention -is to pro vide :means :foreliminati-ng friction iat `the place of entry of such elements .into `atank :or pipe line.

Other objects and featurescf my invention will B, wherein the lseveraldevices M, s and 13 are secured and supported on a tanl; (or pipe line)T, as shown,

y'The stator I0 oi the motor is fastened inv any suitable manner to aplatform I2 which is anged at I4 and secured as by rivets or bolts l@ toa `flange I9v of a rotative collar or quill 2|. v

Thus the motor stator I0, base |2, and quill 2| are integrally secured;and these elements are oscillatable about the axis of quill 2| by virtueof bearings 25 which are secured to the quill and serve to support it ina housing or cradle g8, which housing is integral with bracket l3 .yIntermediate the outer races of the ball bearings and the cradle 28 is asleeve 32 havingra rotative t in cradle 28 and terminating in an annularmember 35j at one end and having rotative sealing and'locating contactwith a rigid sealing washer 38 at the other en d. Washer 33 is securedin any suitable manner between housing 28 and an en d flange 4|, as bybolts 43. End liange 4| is provided with labyrinth grooves 41 forimpeding dirt, there being clearance provided around quill 2| Anadditional sealing washer 5B may be used if desired.

The construction is such that the outer races of the bearings 25 may beintermittently manually rotated by grasping the member 35 and rotatingit slightly, thus overcoming any static friction within the bearings soas to render the dev-ice more sensitive 'to viscosity changes. Automaticmeans for constantly actuating member 3 5 lto and fro may also be used.

A rubber cushioned stop member 5| is carried by anges |4 and i9,swinging between the side walls of bracket B to lirriit angular motion'of the-motor stator system lin either direction. VSuitably carried belowrthe center of gravity of the motor is a balancing weight 52 which tendsto maintain Ya normally upright condition' of the motor, i. e., at thecenter of the oscillatory are when the `motor is `not energized.

Housed in the hollow formed by the flanges id -and |-9 is a simple gearreduction device comprising pinion 5'3 and gear 56; the former beingdriven by the motor rotor through shaft 58 and the latter serving todriveV a shaft :6| rotatively disposed within quill 2|. Quill 2| iscomposed of bearing `bronze or simi lar material so that when lubricated`by means of the insertion of oil at oil 'hole 5.!) shaft 6| turnseasily inside quill 2|.

- The shaft and quill extend into the iiuid contained in ythe tank `o rfpipe line there .being a ilerible boot 64 provided to seal againstflu-id leakage. `Boot 64 is bolted -at its outer end to -the side of Tand at its inner end is vprovided with lne'tailic rings 81 and 59`bonded thereto with 69 in turn-bonded or soldered to o :ui'll 2l. Boot6.4 .may be 'provided with ilu-tes :10 so `as -to vincrease "itstorsional liexifbtlity `whereby it will A.tend to twist about its ownaxis during oscillation of quill 2|.

Shaft 6| extends outwardly of the quill and is secured by splining to ametallic plug 13 which is integrally secured as by a pin 14 to an endpiece 15 of spinning element S; which end piece is bolted to the mainbody 18 of the spinner. The' spinner components may be madeof wood andshould preferably be ellipsoid in shape since it has been found thatsuch shape is most suitable for my purpose. The irregularities in thespinner caused by inserting the bolts are smoothed olf by covering thebolt heads with plastic wood or like material and sandpapered intofairness with the body of the spinner.

The end of quill 2| is provided with a retaining flange 8|; and a glandpacking 83 and gland 85 are provided around the quill to prevent fluid.from becoming entrapped between the quill and spinner; gland 85 rotateswith the spinner and has a rotative t about the quill. A string cutter88 may be integral with gland B5, such cutter having a sharp orsaw-tooth edge 90 for shredding any submerged pieces of string which aresometimes encountered in paper pulp and which might foul the spinner bybecoming wedged between it and the quill. Preferably edge 90 should beclosely adjacent the inner end of the boot to shield the quill as Vmuchas possible and also to enhance shredding of foreign material.

As set forth in detail in my prior patent, it will be apparent that whenthe motor is energized, constant speed rotation of shaft 6| will causerotation of the spinner, a certain amount of torque being required toovercome friction with the fluid in which the spinner is immersed. Thistorque will manifest itself in a swinging movement of the motor` statorabout the axis of the quill in accordance with well known principles. Tocounteract this reaction torque a scale pan 9| is carried at the end ofa strap 93 which is partially wrapped-around flange I4. The scale panmay be suitably weighted to counteract the reaction torque of the motorwhen energized so as to maintain a normally upright position.

It is understood that various electrical elements, e. g., mercuryswitches, are required, substantially as shown and described in my priorpatent. The arrangement taught therein is such that oscillation of themotor stator, depending on increase or decrease of motor torque as theviscosity ofthe iiuid in tank T changes, serves to close one or theother of the switches to thereby control through a suitable valvearrangement the influx of high or low viscosity fluid to the tank untilthe original viscosity condition and thus the physical equilibriumV ofthe motor system are restored.

In Fig. 1, certain electrical components, such as a switch mount and aterminal box 91, are

shown. l

In the light of the foregoing description it will be apparent that Ihave substantially isolated the mechanical system from extraneousfrictional influence by having the quill and shaft substantiallyco-extensive wherein the torque necessary to overcome frictionalresistance of the rotating shaft is exerted between the shaft as part ofthe motor rotor, and the quill as part of the motor stator. Thus torquereaction resulting from the overcoming of friction between the shaft andits bearing, i. e., the quill, and the spinner cannot manifest itself ina tendency to oscillate the platform l2, which is a highly desirablecondition; whereas the construction shown in my Vprior patent, asheretofore pointed out, caused spurious oscillation of the sta-V torsupport system due to the necessity of overcoming variations of frictionbetween thef fixed or stationary gland and the rotatingshaft.Accordingly, the system now proposed iss free of frictional eifectsinsofar as such friction may result in unwanted torque reaction betweenthe rotating shaft and any fixed element of the assembly is concerned.

Further consideration will make it apparent that the underlyingprinciple of my present invention resides in providing a quill whichhouses the rotating shaft and mechanically isolates it from the wall ofthe tank into which it protrudes. Thus so long as no frictional force isexerted on the shaft by any stationary element, the novel condition ismet. It will now be appreciated that the quill need not necessarilyextend into the tank if it is not desired to do so, just so long as itprovides a bearing through the wall of the tank for the shaft so that noother friction is encountered by the latter.

I prefer, however, to extend the quill as show so as to eliminate thepossibility of grit accumulation between the shaft and quill.

In the form of my invention shown in Fig.

3, a modified combination is disclosed in that 'no boot about the quill2| is utilized. Instead the structure contemplates a xed gland element|00 secured in an aperture of the pipeline 'I and the vibratory glandelement |03 concentric with fixed element |00 and spaced therefrom by apacking member |08 which is compressed by the flange member |09 in amanner which will be readily understood from consideration of thedrawing. The element |03 is concentric with quill 2| and spacedtherefrom by a packing element ||2 maintained in compression by aflanged member ||5. A solenoid plunger ||8 is secured to the member ||5and a solenoid |20 is utilized to reciprocate plunger ||8 whereby aconstant axial or rotary vibratory motion of the gland |03 will beeffected. It will be appreciated that the packing members |06 yand ||2must not be compressed to an extreme degree. In other words, thecompression exerted by the elements |09 and H5 requires adjustment so asnot to cause undue binding of the vibratory motion of member |03.

This combination of elements serves to maintain a condition of movingfriction at all times on that area of quill 2| which passes through thewall of the tank. Thus static friction which is a1- ways considerablygreater than moving friction is eliminated and any slow oscillatorymotion-of the quill due to changes of Viscosity in the pipe line meetsno resistance, thereby rendering operation of the device substantiallymore sensitive.

In this modification certain other changes have been made in that abearing |25 is disposed between the internal bore of the spinner elementand quill 2|. This bearing may be of a plain cylindrical type and xedpreferably to the spinner element. A packing |28 is used which ismaintained under compression by gland |30 biased by means of the spring|33, all in the counterbore |35. The end of the spinner is provided witha separable member |36 which maybe bolted, as shown, to the spinner bodyfor ease in assembly.

While I have shown a specific embodiment of my invention and certainmodications thereof. it will be appreciatedrthat the noveltyandwspirit i9. Ina device for regulating the apparent viscosity of fluids confinedin a relatively stationary container, a spinner, a shaft attachedthereto for rotating said spinner, a motor for rotating said shaft, anoscillatable cradle mount for supporting said motor xed to the statorthereof `and. oscillatable therewith, means for oscillatably quillmember being disposed about said shaft and supporting the same in freelyrotatable `manner and extending therealong at least up to the point ofcontact with said fluid to isolate said shaft from any other frictionalcontact, a bearing for said mount adapted to be disposed intermediatesaid mount and a fixed support and comprising lan independently movablesleeve adapted to overcome static friction between said mount an saidi'lxed support. 10. In a device for regulating the apparent viscosty offluids confined in a relatively stationary container, a spinner, a shaftattached thereto for rotating said spinner, a motor for rotating saidshaft, an oscillatable cradle mount for supporting said motor fixed tothe stator thereof and oscillatable therewith, means for oscillatablysupporting said mount and motor with the spinner immersed in the lluidwhose apparent viscosity is to be regulated, and a quill member securedto said mount and oscillatable therewith, said quill member beingdisposed about said shaft and supporting the same in freely rotatablemanner and extending therealong 'at least up to the point of contactwith said fluid to isolate said shaft from any other frictional contactand gland means disposed about Said quill member and oscillata'blysupporting the same in fluidtight manner at the point of juncture withsaid container.

11. In a device for regulating the apparent viscosity of fluids, aspinner, a shaft attached thereto for rotating said spinner, a motor forrotating said shaft, an oscillatable cradle mount for supporting saidmotor l'lxed to the stator thereof and oscillatable therewith, means foroscillatably supporting said mount and motor with the spinner immersedin the fluid whose apparent visvisity is to be regulated, and a quillmember secured to said mount and oscillatable therewith, said quillmember being at least up to a point of contact with said uid to isolatesaid shaft from any other frictional contact and gland means disposedabout said quill member and oscillatably supporting the same influid-tight manner, said gland surrounding said quill member beingadapted to be disposed in a wall portion surrounding an aperture in saidcontainer, wherein said gland comprises a sleeve intermediate said quilland saidV aperture and means `for rapidly oscillating said sleeve toovercome static friction between said quill and the wall surroundingsaid aperture.

l2. Device as defined in claim l1 wherein packing material is confinedbetween said sleeve and said quill and further means is present foradjustably compressing said packing. I 13. In a device for regulatingthe apparent viscosity of fluids confined in a relatively stationarycontainer, a spinner, a shaft attached thereto for rotating saidspinner, a motor for rotating said shaft, an oscillatable cradle mountfor supporting said motor fixed to the stator thereof and oscillatabletherewith, means for oscillatably supporting said mount and motor withthe spinner immersed in the fluid whose apparent viscosity is to beregulated, a quill member secured to said mount and oscillatabletherewith, said quill member being disposed about-saidshaft andsupporting the same in freely rotatable manner and extending therealongat least up to the point of contact with said fluid to isolate saidshaft from any other frictional contact and gland means disposed aboutsaid quill member and oscillatably supporting the same in fluidtightmanner, said gland means comprising two sleeves concentrically disposedaround said quill member within an aperture in the wall of saidcontainer, the outermost sleeve being adapted to be fastened to thesurrounding portion of said `container in iluidtight manner, and packingmaterials disposed both between both sleeves and between the innersleeve and saidA quill member to seal the container opening in fluidtight manner and allow said inner sleeve freedom'A to oscillate betweenthe outer sleeve and quill member and means for oscillating said innersleeve.

, 14. In a device for regulating the apparent viscosity of fluidsconfined in a relatively stationary container, a spinner, a shaftattached thereto for rotating said spinner, a motor for rotating saidshaft, an oscillatable cradle mount for supporting said motor fixed tothe stator thereof and oscillatable therewith, means for oscillatablysupporting said mount and motor with the spinner immersed in the fluidwhose apparent viscosity is to be regulated, a quill member secured tosaid mount and oscillatable therewith, said quill member being disposedabout said shaft and supporting the same in freely rotatable manner andextending therealong at least upto the point ofcontact with said fluidto isolate said shaft from any other frictional contact, said quillbeing substantially coextensive with said shaft, extending f therewithinto said spinner, `packing means between said spinner and said quillcomprising a packing member, agland for compressing said packing member,and a spring vfor biasing said gland against said packing member, saidgland, packing member and spring being disposed in a counterboreprovided in said spinner and surrounding said quill.

l5. In combination, a stationary container adaptedto contain iluid whoseviscosity is to be regulated, a device for regulating the viscosity ofthe fluid therein mounted through an aperture in the Walls of saidcontainer comprising a spinner immersed in said fluid, a shaft attachedthereto for rotatingV said spinner, a motor forrotating said shaftdrivingly attached thereto, `an oscillatable cradle mount supportingsaid motor and fixed to the stator thereof, a quill surrounding saidshaft and supporting the same in a freely rotatable manner, said quill`being fastened, to said oscillating cradle mount for oscillationtherewith and extending along said shaft at least up to the point ofcontact with said fluidV to isolate said shaft from any other frictionalcontact, and bearing means surrounding said quill and being integrallysecured to and carried by said oscillatable cradle.

ALAN OSBOUR'NE.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName y Date 1,888,431 Osbourne l Nov. 22,1932 2,344,331 Swift et a1 Mar.14, .1944

